News: Nuclear Program

The acquisition, development and stockpiling of weapons of mass destruction has been a permanent feature of Iran's clerical regime's defense policy since the very beginning, and remains so today.

Khatami has chaired a series of Supreme National Security Council meetings in recent months to review the regime's military doctrine. In these meetings, the SNSC approved the "doctrine of asymmetric warfare."

The mullahs' strategists argue that since the regime's armed forces stand no chance in a conventional confrontation in the age of highly advanced military technology and ultra-modern weapons, they must resort to other tactics, including terrorist attacks and the use of weapons of mass destruction and their means of delivery, ballistic missiles.

Brig. Gen. Mohammad-Ali Jaafari, commander of the Revolutionary Guards' army, told the official IRNA news agency on October 9: "As the likely enemy is far more advanced technologically than we are, we have been using what is called 'asymmetric warfare' methods." We have gone through the necessary exercises and our forces are now well prepared for this."

On July 16, Hashemi Rafsanjani declared: "We must prepare ourselves to confront the enemy's new aggression. We shall respond to this aggression by striking at their heartland."

Khatami had earlier declared on August 1, 1998 that "Iran will not ask for anyone's permission to develop its defense capabilities."

What I am going to reveal today, is the result of extensive research and investigation by the Committee of Defense and Strategic Studies of the National Council of Resistance of Iran, with the benefit of Command Headquarters Inside Iran of the People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran, which I am going to share with you.